Virtual Reality Research
Exploring the Emotional Landscape of Virtual Reality Architecture — May, 2023
Participant navigating a curved architectural space
Make it stand out.
Project Timeline Contributors My Role
5 weeks Keerthana Govindarazan, Researcher/Analyst Researcher/Analyst
Ester Chen, Researcher/Analyst
Discovery
However, this study contrasted two VR locomotion techniques & their effects on participants in large-scale virtual architectural scenes with varying geometries.
Research Objective
They took surveys pre and post scenes.
Pleasure
SUS
Analysis
Some of the measured variables include —
Spatial Presence
Dominance
↗ In straight-line virtual environments, participants could instantly jump to specific spots along a linear route using the teleportation method. This created a unique, angled perspective of the straight-edged surroundings. The approach enhanced navigation in the linear space by enabling direct movement between points.
Arousal
NASA tlx
Simulator Sickness
Through inferential & descriptive statistical analysis, we discovered that —
Participants found both VR navigation techniques easy to use.
10/18 of them preferred the curvilinear scene for its fluidity.
Research Questions
Participant (upfront) continuously walks in VR — to navigate the scene
Click buttons to view spatial.io scenes
We delved into addressing questions like —
Are both VR navigation techniques easy to learn & use?
Do participants prefer curvilinear scene over linear scene?
Do participants’ emotional responses (pleasure & arousal) vary with different locomotion techniques?
Does teleportation elicit spatial presence/simulator sickness experienced in VR?
Methodology
18 participants b/w ages 21 & 31 navigated three VR architectural scenes — Tutorial, Curvilinear, & Linear in a counterbalanced order using Oculus Quest.
↗ In curved virtual environments, participants could glide smoothly along winding paths using the continuous motion method. This allowed them to experience the natural flow of the rounded surroundings. The movement style matched the fluid, unbroken shapes of the curved architecture, possibly deepening participants' feelings of presence and emotional engagement with the space.
Participant (upfront) teleports in VR — jumps to navigate the scene
Participants using teleportation showed higher arousal compared to continuous movement.
Spatial presence and simulator sickness did not significantly differ b/w the two navigation techniques.
Outcome — This study offers insights for designing VR-based products to help architects gather user feedback, enhancing the VR experience for understanding user preferences.
Results
Lastly, based on the insights, architects & designers can create spaces that promote well-being & contribute to responsible building policies.
As a Researcher/Analyst, my responsibilities ranged from concept to research design, implementation & analysis.
Next Project ⸻
Participant navigates a VR architectural scene (recorded on spatial.io)
Studies show that the design & structure of our physical environment can profoundly impact our emotions & performance.
In this context, Virtual Reality (VR) offers a controlled environment for studying how individual environmental/architectural design elements impact human emotions.
Interactive web VR scene using spatial.io (click & drag to play around)
